Brian wilson meet and greet ravinia

Is a Brian Wilson meet and greet worth the price of admission? | Steve Hoffman Music Forums

I just upgraded to the VIP package at Ravinia. I hope to get the information soon. For those who have gotten the information or who have. Brian Wilson's "No Pier Pressure" summer/fall tour schedule: U.S. Summer Tour. June 6 Chicago, IL – Ravinia Festival 8 Denver, CO. Brian Wilson Presents The Christmas album tour! time bandmates Al Jardine and Blondie Chaplin will be performing The Beach Boys' Christmas Album in its.

I was too nervous to ask Brian anything. He signed my stuff.

I wouldn't trade it for anything. I've been a fan my whole life and there is no other person in show business I would rather have met. There was another time I went backstage. A fellow fan hooked me up with passes. There were a lot of people backstage who also had somehow gotten passes.

Way too many, probably. Brian's patience was wearing thin. But wait, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me take you back to Both concerts were amazingly good. The normally troubled Beach Boy had been in top form, looking perfectly relaxed and singing his heart out. Now here we were at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, Connecticut on a Wednesday night, ready to see Brian Wilson perform live one last time.

Being a lifelong fan, it was often frustrating trying to keep up with Brian. For many years he was as elusive as the Sasquatch. My first up-close and personal brush with Brian came in Saratoga Springs during his tour with Paul Simon. By the time I got to him he seemed to be heavily sedated and semi-catatonic. He scribbled his name on my program in an illegible manner, barely able to lift his marker off the paper.

Is a Brian Wilson meet and greet worth the price of admission?

Slightly disappointed, I hopped in the car and saw Brian again a couple of nights later in New Jersey. I am glad I did, because Brian was feeling much better. I could hear him laugh heartily as I stood in line waiting my turn. Having him actually speak to me was even more exciting.

I proudly displayed my signed LP in my bedroom. It was one of the few times I had actually realized a lifelong goal. Still, I secretly wished I had gotten my picture taken with Brian. I had seen so many pictures posted online of lucky fans getting to meet Brian backstage. I announced to my wife before the show in Connecticut that I would find a way to get us backstage. Most concerts I attend proclaim that no photographs are allowed during the show, so I did not bother bringing a camera with me.

Being on the cutting edge of technology, I did not own a cell phone or a digital camera. This seems kind of dumb considering how hell-bent I was on getting backstage to meet Brian. But outside the venue I overheard one of the Oakdale Theater staff announce that cameras were indeed allowed inside. I did not immediately realize the importance of this fact, as I still did not have the slightest clue of the events which were to follow.

All I had was the hollow threat I had made to my wife about getting backstage. This was my first time attending the Oakdale Theater in Connecticut. It looked oddly pedestrian from the outside.

Inside, it was a giant car commercial with toilets. What sort of madness was this? A familiar bespectacled blonde fellow walked by us.

Meet & Greet - Brian Wilson Community

I nudged my wife with my elbow. Soon he was joined at the concession stand by bassist Bob Lizik. I moved closer to them, yet made no attempt to interrupt whatever covert operation they were performing. This time I mustered up the courage to call out to him and he was nice enough to pause and speak to us briefly. My wife is easily star-struck, and stood there unable to speak.

If she was star struck now, just wait until later… Before long they opened the doors and we went inside the auditorium. It was a nice place with comfortable, cushioned seats. We were easily within spitting distance of keyboardist Darian Sahanaja, if I happened to raise his ire during the show. We were relaxing in our cushioned chairs when suddenly a door at the side of the stage opened. A tall, balding cat wearing a leather jacket and shades strolled out, looking lean and mean with an attractive woman on his arm.

I recognized him immediately and nudged my wife with my elbow once again. I cut the story short, however, when I spotted well-known Beach Boys super-fan coming down the aisle.

Brian Wilson doesn't like Mike Love... at all

I had seen her at other Brian Wilson concerts but never went up and introduced myself. This time I yelled her name out and got her attention. The super-fan and I met up near the stage. I introduced myself and we were shooting the fat when all of a sudden David Marks comes up from behind and embraces her. He then stuck a hand out to me and I shook it. Cutting to the chase, super-fan hooked me up with a pair of magical red wristbands which would allow us to go backstage following the show.

I was dumbstruck by the realization that I was a mere two and a half hours away from meeting my hero. I returned to my seat and gave my wife her wristband. It was at this moment that two significant problems became apparent to me.

First, I had nothing for Brian to autograph. Problem number two was more severe: July 17 — Russian violin virtuoso Maxim Vengerov: He joins Conlon in celebrating the centennial of Benjamin Britten, performing the Violin Concerto, a rare treat in the U.

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